NBA superstars LeBron James and Stephen Curry are “excited” by the prospect of joining forces as the United States chases a fifth straight gold medal at next month’s Olympics, USA coach Steve Kerr said Thursday.
Los Angeles Lakers superstar James and Golden State Warriors ace Curry will finally line up in a USA team for the first time in Paris after facing off against each other in 52 games during a 15-year rivalry in the NBA.
USA and Golden State coach Kerr said Thursday the two basketball icons were relishing the prospect of teaming up.
“LeBron and Steph are really excited to play together,” Kerr said. “I’ve talked to both of them about this idea of being together after going against one another with such high stakes over the years.
“They obviously fit really well together. I think the idea of Steph playing off the ball and LeBron pushing it in transition, that’s pretty intriguing.”
Curry has a 29-23 winning record against James in the NBA, with a 17-11 record in playoff meetings.
Last season, the duo featured in one of the games of the year, combining for 82 points in a double-overtime thriller which saw the Lakers narrowly defeat Golden State 145-144.
“It’s something I’ll be able to talk about with my grandkids, about being able to compete with one of the greatest players to ever play the game,” James said of Curry after that instant classic.
Kerr said Curry and James will aim to gel over the course of a training camp which begins in Las Vegas next week before a warm-up game against Canada on July 10.
The USA squad also has pre-Olympic games in Abu Dhabi and London before their opening group game of the Olympics against Serbia on July 28 in Lille.
“They’re really excited to compete together for the first time and to find over the course of the practices and the friendlies some of the nuances that they can really exploit and explore, to just to see where they can have an impact for each other,” Kerr said.
James and Curry are part of one of the most powerful USA teams ever to take part in the Olympics, with a roster that also includes the likes of Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, Jayson Tatum and Joel Embiid.
“Our roster is obviously laden with stars and players who have accomplished so much,” Kerr said. “And what I love about these guys is they want to accomplish more.
“They want to win an Olympic gold medal, and that’s why they all signed up for this.”